Reyna and Octavian
by PJOHoOHG
Summary: Just pretend Octavian didn't die. :-)
1. Greek Reminder

**Chapter 1: Greek Reminder**

**Reyna's POV**

_I dreamt I was happy. Finally, sincerely happy. I was in the Garden of Bacchus, finally able to love. Venus said I'd never be able to, but I could. I was. Octavian pulled me closer for a kiss._

_Venus' voice filled with laughter. "I said you'd never find love among the demigods. I never said anything about..."_

"Reyna!" Someone yelled.

I sprang up, fully ready to take on an enemy, even while being half asleep and in purple pajamas.

"Reyna, you're late for breakfast." Frank blushed.

I calmed down once I realized it was just a wakeup call from Frank. "How late?"

"It started ten minutes ago." Frank said. "Sorry if I... freaked you out. Shaking you and talking normally didn't work."

I sighed. "You just surprised me. Give me a few minutes and I'll head to breakfast with you."

Frank nodded and dutifully left the room. I grabbed some clothes and headed to the bathroom to change. It didn't take long, but it did take me a few minutes to brush through my hair. Then I suddenly looked up at myself in the mirror.

It seemed as if my reflection were taunting me._ "You think you're such a perfect leader. But look at you, completely disheveled, dreaming of Octavian. Why do you care about him? And why are you so lovesick? You're a praetor, you don't need love."_

I couldn't handle seeing my reflection anymore. I headed out so I could go to breakfast with Frank. But along the way, I couldn't help but ponder those thoughts. Why was I dreaming of Octavian? He's practically the bane of my existence. He's lucky to even be alive after his cape got caught in that onager, but he was detached from the cape after Nico cut it off. And because of his treason, he was just lucky that Percy, Frank, and I had mercy on him by only denouncing him from being Augur and forcing him to do hard labor like a slave would have in Ancient Rome. We could have done much worse...

"Reyna?" Frank got my attention, slowing to a stop just outside the Mess Hall. "I've got to ask... Have you been okay? You've been late to a lot of things lately, you seem less happy than usual, and you didn't pay attention to anything I said on the way here."

He was talking to me? "What did you say on the way here?"

"I was starting casual conversation and talking about my reports on how the Camp is doing." Frank frowned. "What's wrong?"

I grimaced. "Thank you for being a friend Frank, but I'm fine."

I started to head into the Mess Hall, but Frank said something else. "When Annabeth gave me advice about Hazel, she said that a girl is never happy when she says she's fine."

That stopped me in my tracks. "I don't want to talk about it, okay Frank? Besides, I'm already late."

Frank nodded and followed me inside. "You can talk to me any time though."

I smiled. "I'll keep that in mind."

As we walked in, a few people looked up, no doubt starting rumors about why I was late. I took my seat and Frank slid between Hazel and I.

"So, what kept you from breakfast?" Hazel smiled.

"I slept in." I admitted vaguely.

I looked up and immediately caught sight of Octavian. He looked overtired and depressed, but I assumed that was from his punishment. Then I noticed that most of his cohort sat as far from him on the table as possible, while a small few sat close to him with mischievous smirks.

"Hey Octavian, how's the workload?" A boy teased.

"Yeah, how does it feel to go from being an Augur to doing mind numbing slave work?" Another snickered.

"Traitor." One of them chuckled.

It oddly bothered me, and the words came out of my mouth before I realized I was saying them. "Octavian, could you bring your breakfast over here?"

Octavian looked up warily and slowly picked up his tray to do as I asked. Then one of the boys who was teasing him tripped him. The food fell everywhere, including on Octavian.

I stood up in fury. "Clean that."

The one who tripped him snickered. "Yeah Octavian, why don't you..."

"Not Octavian." I clenched my teeth. "I want the one who tripped him to clean it."

The tripper stared at me for a second before seeing the anger in my eyes and doing as I said. I walked over to Octavian and helped him up.

"W-what are you doing?" Octavian stuttered.

"Helping you. What does it look like?" I sighed. "Get yourself cleaned and come back to get another breakfast."

Octavian stared at me for a long moment before leaving the Mess Hall, probably heading for the baths. Everyone else was staring at me in shock.

"Go back to your food." I stated firmly before walking out of the Mess Hall.

I couldn't stand to have them staring at me, and I couldn't help but feel bad for what happened to Octavian. I knew it wasn't my fault, but it bothered me. Before I knew it, I'd sprinted to the Garden of Bacchus, my feet controlling me more than my mind. I avoided the bees as I sat on a bench, head in my hands. I wasn't the strong leader the Romans needed. I was weak.

"Reyna?" A familiar voice came from next to me.

I jumped a little before realizing it was Percy. "What are you doing here?"

Percy frowned, probably hearing the crack in my voice as much as I did. "I came with Annabeth for a visit. We want to go to college here, remember? I asked Frank where you were, but he said you took off from breakfast. Annabeth mentioned that this was your favorite place, so I decided to check for you here."

"Why? What reason would you have for coming to see me?" I asked.

"You're one of my closest friends at Camp Jupiter. Why wouldn't I come see you?" Percy looked worried. "Are you okay Reyna?"

He was a reminder of one of the reasons I wasn't okay. "Do you remember how I indirectly implied we could date? Back when I suggested you become a praetor?"

"Yeah..." Percy admitted.

"It's funny how I didn't notice until she said anything. It should have been obvious..." I rambled.

"Notice what?" Percy asked.

"Venus said I could never fall in love with a demigod. It almost seems like a curse to me, what with Jason, you..." I trailed off.

Percy put an arm on my shoulder. "Reyna, you shouldn't take Aphrodite at her word. You weren't meant to be with Jason, because he found Piper. And I loved Annabeth way before I ever met you. You just need to find someone besides us. Aphrodite also said Annabeth and I would turn into a tragedy, but we're doing fine."

"Percy, I'm not like you. Even if what you say is true, I don't have the time to go out and find someone. And I shouldn't need love. I..." I was cut off by Percy pulling me into a hug.

"Reyna, even if what you say is true, Aphrodite only mentioned that you can't love a _demigod_. There's still mortals, legacies, or even Gods. Although, I really don't suggest dating a God." Percy said.

"Always the optimist." Tears were streaming down my face. "That's one of the things I like about you."

"You're niceness and vulnerability is starting to scare me." Percy joked.

"Yeah, I don't know what's wrong with me." I pulled away from his hug.

"Iris Message me more often. Then we can figure out what's wrong with you." Percy gave one of his heart melting grins and kissed my cheek.

"And you wonder why girls like you." I smiled.

"Psh, I know why." Percy strutted like a ladies' man as he walked away. "All this talk of Team Leo... well I say Team Percy is the best!"

I giggled slightly as he left the Garden. He was probably going back for Annabeth. I decided to head back to my regular schedule. I walked into the Colosseum and headed up to the praetor seat only to find... "Mars?"

"You're late. Where have you been?" Mars questioned.

"Attending to some personal duties." I said. "What brings you here today?"

"Just thought I'd entertain myself by watching some fights." Mars pointed to the sword practice.

I needed no further explanation, but Mars was sitting in my seat, and Frank was in his own seat...

Mars must have noticed my awkward stares. "Frank, let Reyna sit in your seat. I'd tell her to sit somewhere else, but Venus says I should be respectful to women..."

Frank immediately got up during Mars' grumbling and gestured for me to sit.

I sat down. "But where will you sit?"

"It won't kill me to sit on the floor." Frank smiled as he sat on the ground.

"Octavian, move!" Someone yelled.

I snapped my head to find Octavian lying on one of the benches in the main arena, a crowd forming around him. He had a blanket on and was cuddling a teddybear. I would've laughed if I weren't so concerned about the situation.

"I said move!" The boy who had yelled before did so again.

"No." Octavian mouthed. I couldn't hear him because he wasn't yelling.

The boy who wanted Octavian to move punched him.

I was so angry that the word left my mouth before I processed it. "STOP!"

The crowd around Octavian as well as everyone else in the arena stopped and stared.

"GET AWAY FROM OCTAVIAN!" I yelled in fury. "EVERYONE HEAD TO THE CIRCUS MAXIMUS FOR THE CHARIOT RACES! NOW!"

After seeing the fury on my face, everyone obeyed me. Even Frank. Mars was the only one who stayed. He stared at me with amusement.

"What?" I snapped.

"I'm impressed with your... leadership skills. Although, you sounded more like one of my children than Bellona's just now." Mars smirked. "Why?"

"None of your business." I grumbled as I headed through the arena to see Octavian.

When I got there, he was brushing dirt off of his blanket. I also noticed his trunk sitting under the bench.

"How long have you been sleeping here?" I asked.

"How long has it been since a week after my punishment started?" Octavian shrugged.

"You've been sleeping out here for a month?!" I exclaimed.

"I guess so." As Octavian looked up, I could see that where he was punched was turning purple. He had a black eye. "Why does it matter to you?"

"Why wouldn't it?" I countered. "My job is to keep the Campers safe, including you."

"Reyna, I've never seen you this angry. I'm pretty sure this is about more than Camper safety." Octavian locked eyes with me.

I stared into them for a second, seeing all the mischief and anger gone. He was depressed. "I've never had a camper treated this cruelly. Even if they were charged with treason."

Octavian seemed to study me for a second. "You sincerely believe what you're saying. Can... can a traitor still complain about maltreatment?"

"Octavian, you were never given the punishment most traitors get. We could have killed you if we wanted. You're still considered a Camper. A probatio. You can complain any time." I assured him.

"Can we talk about this in your office? This somehow doesn't seem like a good place." Octavian requested.

I gestured for him to follow me and we headed to my office. Aurum and Argentum were laying next to my desk, but they got up and into a sitting position as soon as we entered. Octavian sat in a chair as I sat at my desk.

"Give me your complaints." I said.

Octavian took a deep breath. "After I was sentenced to my punishment, my cohort said it wasn't strong enough punishment. They beat me, put my mattress into the lake while I was sleeping on it, and taunted me constantly. I decided to sleep in the Colosseum after a week. And... I think you've been seeing what kinds of things the rest of the Camp has been doing to me. You saw it today."

I frowned. I remembered Octavian having a few bruises when he started his punishment, but I thought they might have been from the battle with Gaea. "Octavian... don't sleep in the Colosseum anymore. I'll see if I can get a house for you in New Rome. Until then... You could stay in my guest bedroom."

"I've started to like sleeping outside. And... why would you be willing to let me sleep in your guest bedroom?" Octavian asked.

Why was I willing to do it? "Because it can keep you safe."

Octavian pondered that thought. "You have a guest bedroom? I thought your house had multiple rooms in case you ever retired or had kids."

That was one thing given to all Roman citizens when they stopped living in cohorts. "I do. I just refer to the extra two bedrooms as guest bedrooms."

"I'll have to get my stuff if I'm going to sleep in your guest bedroom." Octavian stood up.

I followed him back to the Colosseum, where he put the blanket and teddybear back into his trunk, then he dragged it to my house. Octavian didn't say much as we walked in, but he started talking when we got to the bedroom he'd be sleeping in.

"For it being your house, you sure don't have a lot of personal items out. Everything is practically bare." Octavian commented.

I hadn't moved much since I'd moved into the house. I was almost never here anyway, I was taking charge of the Camp. "Maybe that's my personality. Bare walls. What you see is what you get."

"I'm pretty sure you're more interesting than that." Octavian said. "No one is a bare wall. There's always something underneath, something that's been painted over with a bare look on the outside."

"That was... poetic." I said. "But there's not much mystery to me. You should know that by now."

"Actually, most people still don't know how you knew Percy before he showed up with no memory. Including me. And we also don't know how you have an Amazon for a sister, and yet you don't hate men." Octavian mentioned.

"It's no one's business how I originally met Percy." I countered. "And just because Hylla has a negative view of men, that doesn't mean I have to."

"Whatever." Octavian shrugged. "I was just making a point. I think I'll try to sleep now. I don't have any labor today, and I was trying to sleep back at the Colosseum."

I nodded curtly and started to leave the room. As soon as Octavian laid on the bed, I heard a wince of pain. I turned to find him holding his black eye, probably having lain on it.

"Get up." I said.

"But..." Octavian started.

"You need ice on your bruise. Now get up." I instructed.

Octavian reluctantly stood up and followed me into my kitchen I pulled an ice pack out of the freezer and handed it to Octavian. He tried to put it on his eye, but the cold must have stung, because he immediately pulled it back.

"Hand it to me." I said.

Octavian handed me the ice pack. I surprised him by putting it back on his eye and holding it down as he tried to push it away in protest.

"Agh! Get it off of me!" He demanded.

I relentlessly held the ice pack down until he finally stopped fighting me. He must have gotten past the sting of the cold, because he was starting to sigh as if it were relieving his pain.

"Better?" I smirked.

"Better." He admitted.

Octavian suddenly looked at me in confusion. I didn't understand why at first, but then I realized I'd been subconsciously stroking his hair with the hand that wasn't holding down the ice pack. I tried to remove it, but Octavian's hand shot up and held mine in place.

A sudden negative thought drifted into my mind._ "You're a praetor. You don't need love. And he's a traitor."_

I drew back both of my hands, which left Octavian with the task of grabbing the ice pack I nearly dropped. "I... I have to go. I was supposed to direct the chariot races."

I nearly stumbled as I got up, backing into the wall on my way out of the room. As I stepped outside, I tried to figure out what had just happened. Why did I stroke his hair? Why did he hold my hand in place? I was so focused on sorting things out that I ran into someone. Annabeth.

"Ouch. Oh, hey Reyna. Percy said he saw you earlier." Annabeth greeted me with a smile. The smile faded as she assessed the look on my face. "Are you okay?"

"Yes. I..." I wasn't sure what to say. "I have to go to the chariot races. Maybe I'll visit you before you leave."

"Okay... See you later!" Annabeth called as I scrambled to the Circus Maximus.


	2. Counting Stars

**Chapter 2: Counting Stars**

**Octavian's POV**

I'd thought about it. I'd once considered the possibility of Reyna and I dating. She was a girl. I was a boy. She was pretty. I was... something. She was a praetor. I was an Augur. She was single. I was single. Perfect match, right? Wrong. It was always known how big of a crush she had on Jason, and the only time I got the courage to ask her out, she was flirting with Jason. Of course, it didn't help that I was mean to her most of the time. But I was mean to everyone! And she was throwing me mixed signals, asking me to move in, then running away at my first show of affection.

"Who am I kidding? She was just being a leader." I sighed.

Maybe sleep would help me. Nope.

I dreamt of Reyna. I dreamt of her laughter filling the Garden of Bacchus, more joyful than I'd ever heard her. I was chasing her. I finally caught up to her and pulled her in for a kiss.

Venus' laughter filled the Garden next. "I was right. You two are perfect for each other!"

I pulled away from my kiss with Reyna, finding her frozen in time. "What do you mean?"

"Octavian, don't you know why you've never found love? Why Reyna seems to only chase men who don't want her?" Venus giggled.

"No. Why?" I questioned.

"Because, I've saved you two for each other. And you two were attracted to each other before I ever interfered." Venus smiled.

Was Reyna attracted to me? "But, she runs away when I get close to her."

"That's because she doesn't want to get hurt. She knows she can't successfully date demigods. And she hasn't considered the fact that you're not a demigod. You're a legacy." Venus smirked. "When the time comes, remind her that you're not a demigod. You're a legacy."

With that bit of advice, Venus disappeared and my dream dissolved. I was awake again. After a look at a clock Reyna had had in the room, I realized that it was afternoon. My shift at slave work was starting soon. I got up and headed for the border, in search of Terminus.

"Ah, there you are. Just on time." Terminus said. "Follow Julia to the bridge near Temple Hill. You'll continue helping with the rebuild."

I nodded and followed the little girl to the bridge. None of the other workers had shown up today. It looked like I'd be building alone again today. I picked up a brick, carried it to the place I was putting it, and made sure the cement would hold it in place. I continued this process a few more times.

"Octavian?" Reyna's voice came from behind me.

I turned to see her, wearing a purple shirt and a pair of jean shorts, weapon strapped to her side. I was wearing something similar. "Visiting Temple Hill?"

"Yes." Reyna said. "Where are the other workers?"

"Looks like they decided not to show up today." I shrugged.

"Does this happen a lot?" She asked.

"Occasionally." I admitted.

She studied the bricks, as well as my method of rebuilding. Then she picked up a brick and started building herself.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"This bridge should be rebuilt as soon as possible, and no one else is here to do it, so I'm going to help you." Reyna shrugged.

"Are you sure? This was meant to be my punishment, not a job for a praetor." I pointed out.

"Even Atlas needed his burden lifted at times." Reyna said.

"He's evil. And you just used his Greek name." I said.

"That's not the point." Reyna put another brick into place. "The point is, this needs to get done."

I shrugged and continued putting bricks into place. We built in relative silence for about an hour, but then Reyna decided to speak.

"Octavian... I'm sorry. I wish the Camp wouldn't ostracize you and treat you like a slave." Reyna apologized.

"It's not your fault. You gave me a fair punishment, and they misinterpreted it as an excuse to hurt me. You don't have to apologize to me." I said.

Reyna stared off towards New Rome. That momentary lapse in attention caused her to slip on some mud, so I tried to catch her. I only succeeded in falling with her. We'd landed in a big pile of mud.

"Gross." Reyna spit out some mud, which promptly landed on my face. "Oh, I'm so sorry Octavian..."

"It's okay." I wiped the mud off and flung it on her face. "Now we're even."

Reyna had a playful smirk I'd never seen before as she wiped it off and put it back on my face. I immediately knew what game we were playing, so I put a handful of mud onto her face. We had a mud war like that for a while before we were interrupted.

"Reyna? Octavian?" Jason's voice broke through the sound of our playful laughter.

Reyna immediately stopped dead in her tracks, eventually pushing me off of her. "Jason? What are you doing here?"

"I came back to visit with Annabeth and Percy. Piper's here too." Jason said. "What are you two doing?"

Reyna's face showed conflicting emotions. Sourness, probably directed at Jason mentioning Piper, and toleration, also likely to be directed at Piper. "We slipped in some mud while I was helping Octavian rebuild the bridge. We decided to have fun with it instead of complaining about getting mud on our clothes."

"Don't you two hate each other?" Jason questioned.

"Why do you care? You're never here, so we could all die and you wouldn't notice." I snapped.

Jason shot me a look. "I wasn't talking to you. And from what I heard, you're practically a slave now."

"Actually, he's a probatio, but he's doing some labor as punishment for what he did." Reyna piped up.

"Since when does treason only denounce you to probatio? And why are you helping him instead of the builders?" Jason was starting to annoy me.

"He's been denounced to probatio because Percy, Frank, and I agreed on a less harsh punishment than death, and I'm helping him because the other workers didn't show up." Reyna looked uncomfortable.

"This place has really gone downhill since I left. Slackers, denouncement, and a praetor reduced to helping a traitor." Jason sighed.

I saw Reyna's demeanor change from uncomfortable to depressed within seconds. She no longer looked like she could fight, her eyes turned sad, and I think I saw tears forming, but I can't be sure since she hurriedly stood up and bolted. She'd ran out of my line of sight in thirty seconds or so.

"At the moment, you're worse than I ever was. You just single handedly insulted Reyna and broke her heart all over again. You're one of the few people who's opinion she cares about, and you just insulted her leadership skills. And bringing up your girlfriend just rubbed salt in a wound that wasn't fully healed yet. You reduced her to tears, and I don't think you even care." I stood up and headed in Reyna's direction.

"Who made you high and mighty? Why are you acting like you're better than me?" Jason called out.

"A lot of things have changed since you left, Jason. For better or worse." I said.

After getting directions from a few lares, I found out Reyna was in the public baths. And although you may call me crazy, or even a pervert, I had to know she was okay. I decided I'd break into the girls' section of the baths.

"Apollo! Apollo!" I whispered vehemently.

He appeared seconds later, a stupid grin on his face. "Octavian."

"Can I ask a favor?" I asked.

"Depends on the favor. And how it benefits me." Apollo wiggled his eyebrows.

"I need you to sneak me into the girls' section of the public baths." I said.

"You lady killer!" Apollo exclaimed.

"No, I'm looking for someone specific." I sighed.

"Ooh, what's her name?" Apollo smirked.

"Not for that reason. Agh, I don't have time for this!" I groaned.

"Well I do. So tell me her name, or you're not getting in." Apollo folded his arms with a grin.

"Reyna. I have to see Reyna." I sighed.

"Ah, so you're going for the nut." Apollo said.

"Nut?!" I exclaimed.

"Yeah, she's a tough nut to crack. The only reason she was attracted to Jason and Percy so easily is because they're special. They're not just lady killers, they're slayers!" Apollo explained. "Girls like that sensitive kind of guy."

"Yeah, Jason's really sensitive." I rolled my eyes. "Can you get me in there now?"

"Best of luck." Apollo grinned.

Apollo disappeared, but in his place, the public baths appeared. With me standing in the water, right in front of Reyna. A few girls screamed, but Reyna just jumped a little and held her hand to her chest. One of the screamers was Annabeth.

"Octavian, what are you doing in here? Scratch that, HOW did you get in here?" Reyna questioned.

Luckily, the bath water was covering the chests of every girl who was sitting in the baths, otherwise I would be in bigger trouble. I blushed. "I didn't think Apollo would put me RIGHT in the middle of the baths, but I wanted to make sure you were okay..."

Annabeth was sitting next to Reyna and had a rare dumbfounded look, her face completely red.

"Octavian..." Hazel looked scandalized. "No matter why you're here... I think it would be best to take this conversation somewhere else. We had to work through a lot of modesty issues just to get Annabeth IN here..."

Annabeth proceeded to elbow Hazel before covering her chest again.

"Can... I talk to you? Outside?" I was beet red.

"Just... wait for me outside. I'll need a few minutes to get dressed." Reyna was starting to look a little red herself.

I nodded and turned to leave, girls giving me nervous looks on my way out.

**Reyna's POV**

"So... you and Octavian are friends now?" Annabeth asked.

"Even I don't understand this situation. Over a month ago we were at each other's throats. Now... he's decent as a person. It's strange." I shrugged as I pulled my clothes on.

"He must at least think of you as a friend. Why else would he sneak into a girls' public bath?" Annabeth shook her head.

I wasn't sure on that one either.

"For Gods' sakes." Hazel rolled her eyes. "No wonder you didn't date Percy until you were sixteen. Even I can see that Octavian is developing feelings for Reyna."

I stared at Hazel as though she'd just said Gaea was rising again.

Annabeth got a look of surprise that slowly turned into a smile. "Actually, you might be right. This is pretty similar to the way Percy acted when I realized he liked me. Except he didn't sneak into a public bath. And I knew Percy liked me! He was just too big of a Seaweed Brain to figure out I liked him!"

"Whatever you say." Hazel snorted.

I walked away quietly, both girls calling out to me. I just ignored them and headed outside to meet Octavian. He was waiting just outside the entrance, Terminus scolding him.

"Sneaking into a public bath!" Terminus exclaimed.

"I'll take it from here, Terminus." I said.

"Of course, Reyna." Terminus disappeared.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" I asked.

Octavian looked concerned. "Are you okay? After the way Jason..."

"I'm fine, Octavian." I lied. "Jason just doesn't understand..."

"Stop making excuses for Jason, okay? He abandoned us for the Greeks, rubs his girlfriend in your face every five seconds, and acts like he's the only one who knew how to run this Camp. You've done a perfect job as leader, even I have to admit that. And it was almost like he abandoned us before he even left." Octavian ranted.

I was speechless for a second. "What do you mean?"

"Even before he knew about the Greeks' existence, he was always talking about leaving Camp for somewhere better, and saying things about how we should change in a way that made him sound Greek. And don't you remember back when I was your friend? Just for a day? Don't you remember why?" Octavian explained.

I did remember the day Octavian was my friend. Clearly. When we'd had somewhat of a dance for the Camp—because they'd requested it for so long—, Jason and I had agreed to go together as friends. I'd even bought a nice dress. But a few hours before the dance, Jason had told me he'd found someone to go with as his date and said he hoped I wasn't angry. I lied and told him I wasn't. But as soon as he left, I cried in my room. Then Octavian had come. He said I was late to the dance and he knew Jason was the reason why.

"If you really want to be a strong praetor, you need to show up with or without him. I'll even be your date." Octavian had offered.

I'd ended up agreeing and put my dress on. Octavian stared at me open mouthed, but he played it off as his jaw hurting. When we'd shown up to the dance, everyone was whispering about Octavian and I showing up together. Jason had stared at me guiltily from across the room.

"I do remember, Octavian. I do remember." I said.

"Then stop defending him. I was one of your enemies, and I was a better friend than he was." Octavian said.

I wasn't sure what to say to that. "It's almost time for dinner. We should go."

"I don't really want to go back in there." Octavian admitted.

"You'll be sitting with me. And if they say anything, they'll have to deal with me." I promised.

"Reyna, you can't get the entire Camp in trouble." Octavian sighed.

"Why not?" I countered.

Octavian smiled and we headed to dinner without any further argument. As we walked in, people stared at us. I wasn't sure if it was because we'd walked in together, or because I'd subconsciously let Octavian hold my hand. I pulled my hand away and walked to my seat in silence, Octavian trailing behind me.

"You're here on time." Frank smiled.

"You sound like that surprises you." I said.

"It surprises me." Hazel covertly looked over at Octavian.

I rolled my eyes and continued to eat my dinner.

"Great, you've been taking my advice, Octavian!" Venus appeared behind us.

I nearly spat out my pizza. "Venus?"

"Surprised to see her, Reyna?" Mars laughed.

"What advice?" I cleared my throat.

"Well..." Venus' mouth was covered by Octavian's hand.

"Nothing." Octavian was obviously lying.

Annabeth came up and started pulling Venus away.

"What are you doing?!" Venus exclaimed.

"Leave it alone, Aphrodite. For once, just leave it alone." Annabeth continued pulling her.

"Is Percy here?!" Venus' form shifted slightly, probably into Aphrodite. "You two are still my favorite couple."

"Damn it." Annabeth muttered.

I didn't blame her. Being Aphrodite's favorite couple usually meant a lot of obstacles.

"Typical Venus. She's not even that different as Aphrodite." Hazel rolled her eyes.

I stared at Octavian, trying to figure out what advice Venus gave him. When I couldn't figure it out, I finished my dinner in silence. At least, I started to.

"Hey Reyna." Octavian said.

I turned to see Octavian with five butter knives hanging out of his mouth like fangs.

"Grr." Octavian gave a poor excuse for a growl.

I smirked at how ridiculous he looked. That earned me a smile from Octavian. Then he stuck a spoon in each of his ears. "I'm an ogre! Argh!"

Octavian had used Shrek's accent. I couldn't help but give a small laugh. Then I watched as Octavian crafted a bunch of forks into what looked like a makeshift crown. He placed it on my head. "All hail Reyna. The best praetor Camp Jupiter has ever had."

I laughed a little more loudly this time and I turned to notice that most of the Campers were staring at us. Even the lares, Venus, and Mars were staring. The only difference between the Gods and the rest of the room was that Venus and Mars had entertained smirks.

"What?" Octavian snapped. "Have you never seen a praetor laugh at an idiot before?"

With that said, Octavian left the Mess Hall.

"Octavian, wait." I stood to follow him.

I ignored the eyes watching me around the room, focused only on going after Octavian. As I stepped outside, I couldn't find Octavian. Sadness welled up within me as I decided to go home. As I stepped inside, I couldn't help but check the room I'd given Octavian. He was on his bed.

"Octavian, I don't know if you're asleep. But if you're awake... I hope you know I wasn't laughing because I thought you were an idiot. I laughed because it was funny." I got no response from Octavian. "Well... goodnight Octavian."

I walked to my room and prepared for bed. I also put the crown of forks on my nightstand. Then I let myself drift into sleep. It wasn't a long sleep. I woke up around midnight, a cold feeling creeping over me. I'd thankfully had a dreamless sleep, but I couldn't shake the feeling something was wrong. I got up and peeked into Octavian's room. He wasn't there.

"Octavian?" I turned the light on.

I couldn't find him. I checked the entire house, but he wasn't there. I made the crazy decision to check outside and let my feet guide me to where they thought I should go. I finally found Octavian in the Colosseum, lying on the same bench with the same blanket and teddybear from earlier.

"What brought you out here?" I asked as I sat next to Octavian.

"I could as you the same question." Octavian tilted his head. When he got no response from me, he answered me. "I couldn't sleep. I'm used to sleeping out here now, counting the stars."

"I thought it was impossible to accurately count all the stars." I said.

"I can try." Octavian shrugged as he sat up.

"I used to try counting stars. I got to a thousand before I lost my place." I smiled.

"What made you stop trying?" Octavian asked.

"Frustration. Lack of sleep." I shrugged.

"Do you want to try counting them with me?" Octavian asked.

"Okay." I agreed. "Where do you want the start point to be?"

"The horizon where the sun comes up. That way we'll be less likely to lose our place if the sun comes up." Octavian said.

With that, we started trying to count the stars. I wasn't sure how long we counted, but I do remember falling asleep.

"One thousand and twenty five..." Octavian yawned.

"One thousand and twenty six." My eyes started to droop.

"Maybe we should try again tomorrow." Octavian suggested.

"Maybe..." I yawned as my head drooped onto his chest.

We were lying on the ground of the Colosseum.

"Thanks for thinking I was funny." Octavian must have heard what I said earlier.

"Thanks for the crown." I yawned.

"Goodnight, Reyna..." Octavian sounded like he was falling asleep.

"Goodnight, Octavian..." I trailed off as the world became black around me.


	3. The Chariot

**Chapter 3: The Chariot**

**Reyna's POV**

I woke up to find myself still lying next to Octavian. But I was also being cuddled by him. Looks like I replaced the teddybear.

"Huh, I thought Octavian would have a harder time with you. But I guess he cracked the nut." Apollo shrugged casually from a few feet away.

I nearly jumped, but then I remembered that I was being cuddled by Octavian. "What are you doing here? And what are you talking about?"

"I take an interest in Octavian. And the nut thing is a metaphor for your tough exterior." Apollo grinned.

"What?" I blinked the sleep out of my eyes.

"You do realize what's going on, right?" Apollo snorted. "Octavian likes you. In the more than friends kind of way. And I think you like him too."

"And I think you're annoying. Everyone has a different opinion." I countered.

"Oh, I love you two as a couple. You're going to be one of Aphrodite's favorite weddings." Apollo smirked.

"Was that a guess? Or..." I hoped to the Gods it wasn't a prediction.

"Looks like you'll have to figure out which one." Apollo wiggled his eyebrows and disappeared.

Octavian snored and suddenly started to wake up. I immediately removed myself from where we were laying and sat on the nearby bench.

Octavian blinked his eyes open. "Did we... did we stay out all night?"

"We fell asleep, remember?" I reminded him.

"Yeah, but... I'm just tired and confused." He said.

I knew the feeling. "Maybe... maybe we should get home and change into something else."

I was in my pajamas and he was still wearing yesterday's clothes.

"Good idea." Octavian agreed.

He got up and we headed back to my house. When we got there, my door was wide open and people were coming in and out.

"What's going on?" Octavian asked.

"I don't know. But I intend to find out." I said.

We walked inside, people not even noticing us as they passed by. They seemed focused on something.

"Where do you think she is?" Frank's voice came from my bedroom.

"I think Octavian did something to her." Jason said. "There was something off about her yesterday. And she was... hanging out with him. Like they were friends."

"I think she feels bad for him. She knows his punishment is well deserved, but... the other campers are taking it too far." Frank said. "I don't think he'd do anything to her."

"Hey, cool fork crown!" Percy exclaimed.

He and Annabeth were still here.

"Don't touch Reyna's stuff." Annabeth slapped his hand.

"If I may, I can shed some light on when she first went missing." A lare that helped me with housework said.

"Shed away." Frank turned to him.

I was watching the scene from my bedroom's doorway.

"You see, she wasn't sleeping well last night and suddenly woke up around midnight. She decided to go see Octavian in her guest bedroom and discovered he wasn't there. She searched the house for him and left when she couldn't find him. She was going to search the camp." The lare explained.

"And? What happened after that?" Jason demanded.

"I don't know. I didn't follow her. And she never came back last night..." The lare sighed. "But the thing is... the way she seemed concerned... it was almost as if..."

I cut off whatever he was about to say by entering the room. "I'm fine. Now get out."

The lare looked relieved—and so did everyone else. Then they stared at me curiously.

"What happened?" Jason asked.

"Where were you?" Frank questioned.

"Why are you wearing pajamas?" Percy laughed.

"I found Octavian and was too tired to come back home. Now get out." I said.

"So you're okay?" Annabeth checked.

"Perfectly fine. Now get out." I repeated.

Frank saw the annoyed look on my face and started herding people out of the room. Jason escaped Frank's herding.

"I'll be out in a minute." Jason said.

Frank sighed and herded everyone else out of the room. "I'll start getting people out of your house."

It was just Jason, Octavian, and I in the room.

"What do you want?" I sighed.

"What's happened? Why did you go out looking for Octavian? And why is he living in your guest bedroom?" Jason interrogated.

"He's living here because I'm protecting him from his cohort. And the rest is none of your business." I snapped.

Jason held up his hands. "Reyna, I'm just trying to understand..."

"That's the problem! You don't understand! And you don't need to anymore! You're not praetor! Frank and I are the praetors! Now get out of my room!" My voice cracked.

"Reyna, I'm your friend. I'm just trying to understand the situation." Jason backed to the door.

"But you never understood. If you understood... Piper wouldn't have become your girlfriend." I was starting to cry. "Now get out!"

Jason's eyes widened at what I said, but he just backed out of the room without further argument. I really started crying after he left. Octavian hugged me and I let him.

"Do you want to see something cool?" Octavian asked.

"Sure." I said. "Just let me change first."

**Octavian's POV**

After Reyna and I changed clothes, I led her to Temple Hill. I wanted to turn the sadness Jason caused her into amusement caused by what I was about to do.

_"Please, Apollo. Please do what I ask."_ I mentally prayed.

_"Why should I trust you with this? Do you realize how long it takes for Mars' children to be trusted with what you're asking?"_ Apollo countered.

_"Please, Apollo! You're cooler than Mars! And how often do I ask for help from you? Almost never. Please!"_ I begged.

_"I would say that flattery gets you nowhere, but I'd be lying. And you have a point about how you rarely ask for my help. Besides, Venus and I are betting on which of you will make the first real move."_ Apollo sounded like he was grinning.

"Hey!" I scoffed indignantly.

Reyna looked startled. "Hey, what?"

"Sorry, I wasn't talking to you." I laughed nervously. "Apollo was in my head."

Reyna rolled her eyes. "Yeah, he can be pretty annoying."

Luckily, what I wanted was there when we got to Temple Hill. Apollo's sun chariot.

"What's Apollo's chariot doing here?" Reyna asked.

"It's here on loan." I said. "I was hoping you'd want to fly in it with me."

"Won't that be like Icarus getting too close to the sun?" Reyna joked.

"We won't be too close to the sun. We'll _be_ the sun. Besides, Icarus was a weak Greek." I grinned.

"That last part rhymed." Reyna teased.

"Come on. Fly with me." I got in the chariot and extended my hand. "Do you trust me?"

"Don't turn into Aladdin." Reyna rolled her eyes as she gripped my hand. "And yes, I do trust you."

I grinned as I helped her into the chariot and tried to get it going.

"Do you know how to drive this thing?" Reyna asked.

"The Greeks know how to do it, so it can't be that hard." I shrugged.

"You didn't learn how to drive it first!" Reyna exclaimed as we took off.

"Oh, well. It's too late to go back now." I smiled.

Reyna looked nervous for a few minutes after that, but she eventually smiled and grinned like she was having a good time. She stared at the sights of Camp Jupiter with wonder and fascination. "You know, I see this view of Camp all the time when I'm on Scipio. But... it's somehow different now."

"Well, you're not on a horse. You're in a chariot. And now you can take the time to look at the sights instead of preparing to go into battle or watch the War Games on Scipio." I said.

Reyna looked over at me with a smile that made me want to kiss her. I only resisted because I figured that would be a bit much this quickly.

"You know, we could have been friends a lot sooner if you'd acted like this before." Reyna pondered.

"I didn't have much reason to be nice before." I admitted. "No one liked me even before I was mean."

"I liked you." Reyna said. "It was refreshing to have someone around that wasn't constantly focused on war and competition. And I thought your teddybear was adorable."

"You weren't so bad yourself when I first met you." I said.

We'd met before she was praetor. She'd come to Camp not long before I did and was assigned as my tour guide. She'd seemed a lot more girly back then, but had eventually turned into the girl I knew now. It was an interesting change.

Reyna and I were smiling at each other fondly until the chariot suddenly crashed into the lake.


End file.
